“In winter it is more likely that crevasses will be covered by snowfall,” Mr Newton said.

Alpine Guides manager Arthur McBride said the man was believed to be one of a group which was climbing on the Grand Plateau on the eastern side of the mountain. The terrain in the area changed rapidly, was heavily glaciated and had a number of large crevasses, he said.

New Zealand’s Conservation Minister Nick Smith said there would need to be an inquiry to make sure all possible safety measures were taken.

The soldier from Australia died on a training exercise on Mt Cook, New Zealand’s tallest mountain.Source: News Limited

The victim’s body has been recovered and has been flown back to the Mount Cook Emergency Service Centre. Police are now advising the next of kin.

Mr McBride told the New Zealand Herald, “there were helicopters all over the place”.

The location of the accident was “a long way away” from a large rock avalanche, reported yesterday, on the south face of Mt Cook, he said.

The avalanche destroyed a climbers hut and covered a wide area. Authorities were now trying to determine the stability of the area.

New Zealand’s Department of Conservation said there were no records of visitors to the area at the time and aerial investigations did not indicate anyone had been caught in the incident.

CLP cabinet minister John Elferink charged taxpayers more than $45,000 for a ‘study trip’ to the United States over the Christmas holidays, including visits to Cape Canaveral Space Base and Universal Studios.